Incubator



H. W. AXFORD.

Incubator.

Patented Sept. 21,1880.

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UNITED STATES PATENT. OF ICE.

HARRIS W. AXFORD, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

INCUBATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 232,325, dated September 21, 1880.

Application filed December 12, 1879.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, HARRIS W. AXFORD, of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Incubators for Hatching Ghickens, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, illustrating the improvement.

Figure l is a side elevation of my improved incubator Fig.2, a longitudinal sectional elevation thereof on line 00, Fig. 3; Fig. 3, a top or plan view of the oven, with the top broken away to show the trays and the frame of the turn-table; Fig. 4, a horizontal section of the heater on line 00, Fig. 2, drawn to a reduced scale Fig. 5, a perspective View of one of the egg-trays removed from the oven Fig. 6, a broken vertical section of the oven, taken on linez of Fig. 1, showing the curtain for excluding cold when the trays are being placed in or removed from the oven. Fig. 7 shows the lamp for heating the oven. Fig. 8 is a detached elevation of the curtain in position in the door of the incubator.

In incubators for hatching chickens it is important that the apparatus should be constructed to operate in any climate, and be so simple as to be operated by any person accustomed to raise poultry. These desirable ends are attained as follows:

The exterior case of the oven is formed of two wood corner hoops, which are annular in form and serve to support the straw-board hoop or periphery and top, the bottom of the oven being perforated to allow cold air to pass down and out. A turn-table with openings vertically through it for the downward passage of cold air, or the cooler air, which is not suitable for hatching purposes, is placed in the oven, and on the'table are placed trays to receive the eggs.

The special object of the turn-table is to subject all the eggs to the same degree of heat, which could not otherwise be done, inasmuch .as the heated air comes in at the top part of the periphery of the oven, and consequently heats one side of the oven more than the other. By turning the turn-table at suitable intervals of time the warm air and cooler air are mixed and an even temperature attained.

I know that turn-tables have been employed in bakers ovens and in brick-burning ovens;

but I have not known that a turn-table has been used for the purpose stated and iuithe same relation to other parts. The difference is that bakers ovens all take heat from theoutside where turn-tables are used, and not from or near the top, as required in incubators.

The turn-table in the incubator performs the function of a fan; and in order that the hatching of the eggs may be as complete as possible the turn-table is made somewhat open, so that the cooler air may pass downward and out at the bottom of the oven.

The trays are removable through a door in the oven, and a curtain is suspended over the inside of the doorway to exclude cold air in removing the trays. This curtain performs the function only of excluding cold air during the removal of the eggs from the oven or putting eggs therein, and in this respect differs from the function of the curtains used in dry-kilns, inasmuch as the curtains in such kilns are used solely to bring theheat down to the lower part of the lumber being dried, and perform no function during the running in and out of the cars with lumber thereon. The curtains in lumberdriers perform no function when the doors of the driers are open.

To remedy the defects heretofore found in heating apparatus for incubators, I have constructed an apparatus which furnishes a sufiicient supply of heat at small cost, and can be operated for a considerable length of time without attention on the part of the attendant.

A E represent the two walls of the oven, and B E the walls of the top thereof, which are placed suitable distances apart, to be filled with any well -known nonconducting materialas, for instance, charcoal. The bottom (J may be made of wood, straw-board, or fabric. If it be made of either of the former materials it should be perforated, to allow the colder air to pass down through and out as the warmer air enters at the top of the oven.

F, Figs. 2 and 3, represents a turn-table, which is made of wood or other suitable material, and turns on a post, G, which is secured to the frame H of the bottom of the oven. Radially on the turn-table are placed any desired number of trays, H, with upturned surrounding to separate the eggs of one tray from those of adjoining trays.

To insure an easy movement of the turntable, anti-friction rollers S S, Fig. 2, are placed on its under side near its periphery and run on a track, S, which is supported on the frame H, three or more small rollers being employed for that purpose.

A door, I, Figs. 1 and 3, is hung over an aperture in the periphery of the oven, and iiiside of the door, and extending the length and height thereof, is hung a curtain, J, Fig. 6, of some light flexible material, which readily permits the trays H to be withdrawn, with eggs or chickens thereon, from the turn-table F without admitting any considerable cold air.

The heater consists of a triple-walled case, K L M, and inside of the inner cylinder is placed a series of pipes, to a, &c., and central pipe, b, having a firm support on a bottom plate or head, 0, and the pipes to open into a flamechamber, W, and into a chamber above the cylinder-head U; but the pipe I) is capped over to prevent the escape of the products of com bustion into the oven by means of pipe T. Head 0 to cylinder L prevents the escape of heat, and deflects it to the lower end of pipe T, from whence it passes to the oven. Surrounding the pipes to and through the head 0 are a series of holes, 0, Fig. 4, which admit air to the cylinder M.

The products of combustion pass through the pipes a a, 850., and down in the chamber surrounding the cylinder M, and out at pipe R, thus concentrating the hot air at the top of the heater, while cold air is taken in at V, Figs. 1 and 2, through a plate, N, which surrounds the flame-chamber, W. This latter chamber is attached to the bottom head or plate, 0, of the heater, and the wick-tube of the lamp Q, projects through the lower part of W, as shown at Fig. 2. From this it will be seen that the cold air coming in contact with the exterior of the flame-chamber and pipes to 1) becomes readily heated before entering the oven.

The means for supplying the lamp Q with oil is as follows: A reservoir, A, Fig. 1, is placed within convenient reach of such lamp, and at or near the top thereof is tapped in an ordinary screw-plug, B, by the removal of which the reservoir may be filled with oil. Tapped into the neck or lower part of the reservoir .is a stop-cock, G, which, when turned properly, will permit oil to how from the reservoir into a cup, E, below, from which, by means of a pipe, 1), the oil passes into the lamp 0. The neck of the reservoir passes down to about onehalf of the depth of the cup E, and if the oil should flow too rapidly through the stop-cock it will rise up and cover the outlet from the reservoir and check the flow of oil, whereby an automatic flow of oil is fed to the lamp.

To prevent such an overflow of oil from the wick-tube as to cause an explosion, a rim, h, is turned over on its top edge, whereby aconsiderable heating-surface is provided to burn the oil at a point near the wick, Figs. 2 and 7. Otherwise than this construction the oil flows in such quantities over the wick-tube as to produce an explosion destructive to the apparatus. V r

I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. The turntable F, provided with openings through it for the cold air to pass down through. it and out at the perforated bottom in an illcubating-oven, as specified.

2. An incubating-oven consisting of annular wooden hoops at its angles, straw-board top and periphery, and a perforated bottom of frame-work and cloth or like material, the parts being secured together by glue or nails, as and for the purpose specified.

3. An incubating-oven provided with turntable F, trays H, and a curtain, J, suspended from the top of the inside of the doorway and covering the area of the aperture for the door, for the purpose of keeping a uniform temperature during the removal of the trays, as specified. 1

4. In the heater, the combination of the outer cylinders, K L, and the inner cylinder, M, between which a smoke-chamber is formed, the pipes to a, placed inside the cylinder M, and communicating with the incubator by means of a pipe, T, the lower cylinder-head, 0, provided with a series of holes, 0 c, to admit cold air to the interior of the cylinder M and around pipes to a, a tlamechamber, W, at the bottom of the heater, and a cold-air chamber, N, exterior to and surrounding the flame-chamber, and provided with air ports or inlets c, as and for the purpose set forth.

5. The reservoir-lamp A Q, D, in combination with the flame-chamber N, cold-air chamber N, smoke-chamber between the cylinders K, L, and M, the hot-air pipes at, communicating with the incubating-oven, and the escape flue or pipe R, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

HARRIS WV. AXFORD.

WVitnesses:

G. L. CHAPIN, HENRY E. ScoLoHMEn. 

